I. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to seat belts of the type used in motor vehicles and aircraft, and more particularly to a device to be used with such seat belts for preventing the uncoupling or release thereof by small children and/or the unintended or inadvertent release of seat belts by adults.
II. Discussion of the Prior Art
Almost all states now require passenger automobiles, school buses and perhaps other vehicles to be equipped with passenger seat belts for restraining the occupants of such vehicles in the event of accidents. Similarly, all aircraft includes seat belts to prevent sudden turbulence or the like from throwing the passenger from his/her seat. Seat belts of the type concerned here generally comprise a pair of nylon webs or straps which are anchored at one end to the frame of the vehicle. The other end of one of the straps has a seat belt buckle having a release button or release lever mounted thereon and a female slot for receiving a latch plate secured to the free end of the other strap. A latching mechanism is incorporated within the buckle for locking the latch plate within the buckle, the release button, when depressed, or the release lever, when lifted, allowing the two parts to be separated.
It has been found that when young children are restrained in a vehicle seat by means of a seat belt of the type described, at a relatively young age, they are able to master the operation of the release button/lever and can often do so without the knowledge of the adult driver. This can be extremely dangerous in the event of an accident.
It can also happen that an adult may inadvertently or unwittingly depress the buckle release button, allowing the belt halves to uncouple.
It is therefore a principal object of my invention to provide an improved guard mechanism for preventing small children from releasing their vehicle seat belt and for inhibiting any unintended release of the seat belt by older persons. We are not the first to address this particular problem. The patent art describes various types of seat belt buckle guards for performing the same function. For example, the Boriskie Pat. No. 4,731,912 describes a seat belt buckle guard in the form of a box-like device having first and second housing portions which are hinged together allowing the seat belt buckle with the release mechanism thereon to be inserted into a first box-like housing and then have the second part of the housing snapped closed about the buckle. The top of the second box is sufficiently rigid that it cannot be depressed to the point where the release button of the seat belt can be actuated. Small children can soon master the act of opening the hinged cover of the box and can then depress the buckle release button.
The Reed Pat. No. 4,939,824 describes yet another vehicle safety belt buckle cover in the form of a generally rectangular shaped covering member which substantially overlays the surface of the buckle and its release button. The cover is held closed relative to the buckle by means of a strap. This design also suffers from the defect that in only a short time, a child can readily effectively remove the buckle guard to gain access to the buckle's release mechanism.
Still other patents describing seat belt buckle guards are Portuese 5,052,087, Haffey 4,987,662, Smith 4,961,251 and Gullickson 4,675,954.